Wow, thank you everyone for the wonderful comments! Kyushu is truly spectacular! I unfortunately do not know much about the statues or the bibs…as there was a bit of a language barrier…Looks like I will have to do some research!! Cheers!

Fantastic photos! Except for Okinawa, I haven’t been off Honshu yet. I would love to see Kyushu.

The bibs on the statues–those are statues of Jizo, a Boddhisattva who protects children. They are decorated by parents whose children die prematurely so that he will take the children to the underworld properly. There’s a really good Japanese Buddhist dictionary with an explanation here: http://www.onmarkproductions.com/html/jizo1.shtml#RedBibHat

..japan is one of those places that ive always wanted to see….i was once in the pacific northwest of the usa, and japan would’ve been just a hop away, but i just didnt get the courage to to do it! maybe soon…very good photos…would like a few more of the buildings in the little towns, narrow alleys etc..!

Wow! I want to go here and dive into the wonderful Japanese country foods!
I just want to say congrats for being freshly pressed today. This was my first time in that club and want to shout out to all of you who share this great day with me.